Kyle XY: Bilodeau Opens Up

Canadian teen actor Jean-Luc Bilodeau is no stranger to character development and evolution.. The 16-year-old native of British Columbia first appeared in the 2004 film Ill Fated, before going on to co-star as Kyle’s adoptive brother Josh Trager in the ABC Family’s science fiction drama series Kyle XY. He went through no less than three auditions and a number of callbacks for the series before managing to snag the role, and he has stated that the character of Josh has gradually grown and evolved along with him over the course of the show’s run so far. The son of Stephen Trager and the brother of Lori, Josh initially feels highly skeptical and suspicious when his psychologist mother Nicole brings home the mysterious Kyle.

Bilodeau has declared that he just played the character the way that he felt was right, and that as the show’s writers and storyline took Josh to a number of different places and twists, he was mostly along for the ride. In an interview with Slice of SciFi, he said that the transition was fairly good and easy for him, and that both he and the character continued to evolve together as they grew up and faced similar challenges in life.

He has also stated that he enjoys the chance of playing a role that he is comfortably familiar with, plus being able to have a great relationship with the people that work alongside him. He considers them a second family, which likewise carries into the family dynamic of the show. But on the subject of the show’s story direction, he has also said that he’s content to leave such decisions in the hands of the writers. He rarely considers having to share ideas with them, though he did get a peek at their discussion boards during a visit and, and he says that he continues to trust fully in their creative process.